New York (Chinatown Newswire) — Austrian legend and former SK Rapid Vienna star Markus “Kiddy” Kietreiber today embarked on a week-long trial with the Chinatown Soccer Club, according to an official statement by the New York outfit.

Kietreiber (seen below during his glory days for the Lower Austrian youth team) will be reunited with Coach Stochl whom he has known for more than a decade-and-a-half.

Stochl will spend the next few days assessing the 31-year-old Kietreiber’s fitness before deciding whether or not to offer him a contract, though the former Rapid playmaker has already impressed.

“Kiddy is a no-nonsense professional and still has a lot to give at the top level,” Stochl said. “I’m very optimistic he can help us in some of the more competitive games during the upcoming Bowery Cup.”

A majority of pundits agree that the CSC has been missing the steel of departed Floridian powerhouse Walton Dale in recent matches and Stochl is hopeful that the experienced Kietreiber will at least offer a temporary solution.

New York (Chinatown Newswire) — The Chinatown Soccer Club defeated a strong Mexican side 3:2 in an impromptu friendly at the club’s Stanton Street field this morning.

The Mexicans struck first after a defensive mishap by the CSC who were missing both Duncan Hamilton and Peter Sutherland at the back.

Swedish forward Jakob Daschek, a late addition to the squad, leveled the score almost immediately though and sent a determined looking CSC on its way towards a convincing victory.

Midfielder Randy Stek and defender Peter Rentz made their first-team debuts during the match and Coach Stochl was satisfied with how the two most recent additions to the squad fared in a competitive environment.

“Those lads will need to be given a little bit of time to adapt to the intensity of the games here but I’m happy that both of them came through this morning’s friendly alright,” the Austrian said.

Note: Some of the Mexican players asked to have their identities obscured as they fall just short of automatic eligibility for a work permit, which requires foreign players to have participated in 75 percent of their national team’s official matches over the prior two years.

New York (Chinatown Newswire) — In an eerie twist of fate, the tight finish to the Chinatown Soccer Club’s official Fantasy English Premier League tournament mirrored that of the real-life action back in England by seeing Coach Stochl clinch the title by a single point.

West Coast powerhouse Matthew Fletcher finished a strong second, edged out of the top spot by the narrowest of margins after a nine-month long campaign and a grand total of more than 2000 points.

CSC pass-master Zach “Kormega” Korman, finished third, while defensive midfielder Dominic Neitz ended up in a disappointing sixth place, after a strong start to the season which in the end saw him rely too heavily on players drafted from his beloved Arsenal FC.

“These games are a great tool to pick up some valuable skills for a potential future career in management,” Korman said.

“It shows you the tough decisions the coach has to make, week in and week out, like naming a squad, dropping players and keeping the place running, it’s definitely intense,” the Francophile midfielder said.

New York (Chinatown Newswire) — Coach Stochl was in the crowd at Nevada Smiths today, as Manchester United claimed their tenth Premier League title.

“That’s the kind of atmosphere and consistent success we strive to achieve with the Chinatown Soccer Club,” Stochl said.

New York (Chinatown Newswire) — The Newswire is proud to present a series of exclusive images from last night’s gallery opening extravaganza in Williamsburg, featuring club members Dan “The Danimal” Funderburgh and Justin “Crazy Legs” Fines.

New York (Chinatown Newswire) — Walton Dale’s glorious career at the Chinatown Soccer Club came to an abrupt end when it was announced today that the powerful midfielder was leaving the club with immediate effect.

Amazingly, Dale still trained with the CSC earlier this morning (see image below).

In a statement, the CSC said that the move was designed to allow Dale to sign a long-term deal with c-60, a club from Gainesville, Florida and it is widely believed that the player initiated transfer proceedings to be closer to his family.

“It has been a great honor and privilege for me to play for the Chinatown Soccer Club over the last few seasons,” Dale said.

“My knowledge of the beautiful game has greatly benefited from the vast amount of European style which I had never before encountered,” he said.

“While it is a sad day for me to leave such a great club I believe that the time has now come for me to move on. I will miss everyone at the club,” the Floridian said.

Coach Stochl paid his respect to Dale, calling him a “fantastic servant to the CSC” and declaring that “Walton has been central to the success of the club during his time here.”

Winger Kevin Trageser also gave a short statement to the media after this morning’s training session, saying that “Walt has been a towering figure at the CSC for many years.”

“His dedication, talent and leadership have been qualities that have marked him out as one of the true greats,” Trageser said.

Defender Duncan Hamilton said that he was still shocked by the news but that “everyone at the Chinatown Soccer Club wishes him [Dale] well with the rest of his career and beyond.”

The Newswire has learned that there will be a private send-off for Dale organized by CSC staple Jason Goodman in Soho tonight.

New York (Chinatown Newswire) — Chinatown Soccer Club staples Justin “Crazy Legs” Fines and Dan “The Danimal” Funderburgh are presenting a selection of their latest artwork in a show opening at the Riviera Gallery in Williamsburg, Brooklyn on Thursday night.

Along with fellow Midwesterner Kevin Devine, Fines and Funderburgh “are sympathetic allies with a shared perspective, refusing to be limited or defined by geography,” according to a statement by the gallery.

More specifically, the trio employs “rubbing, serigraphy and laser etching to create a trilateral conversation on poetry, conspiracy theories, ergonomics, and mortality.”

Coach Stochl said that he would encourage the rest of the club to lend support to their teammates by attending the opening on the early side.

“We’re really one big family here at the CSC and I like to think that our players get together off the pitch as well,” the Austrian said.

“Of course Fines has been missing a few training sessions lately, so we’ll have to take that into consideration when his contract comes up for renewal,” Stochl added jokingly.

New York (Chinatown Newswire) — This weekend’s edition of the Newswire presents a series of exclusive images from the first annual CSC Youngsters Shoot (seen below).

Several former and current players attended with their offspring in tow to have their picture taken before the start of what will be a busy summer for the New York club.

“At the Chinatown Soccer Club we place great emphasis on developing young players and I am proud that we’re now managing to produce new talent from within our own ranks,” Coach Stochl said during a short interview after the event.

While most of the footballing universe follows the end-of-the-season excitement in Europe’s top leagues on plasma screens with surround sound, the dedicated fans of Norwegian outfit SK Brann regularly make due with a jittery live broadcast via the internet.

Undeterred by early morning kick-off times, followers of the club from the picturesque city of Bergen gather in the basement of Nevada Smith’s, New York’s premier football establishment, and huddle around iPod speakers and a laptop to stay in touch with their team’s exploits.

The Coach

New York (Chinatown Newswire) — Below is a snapshot of the CSC first team members who attended Sunday morning’s training session in Chinatown.

The wet conditions kept several previously confirmed players away with Coach Stochl saying that any disciplinary issues would be dealt with internally.